Slain woman’s neighbors say they heard yelling, shots

10/14/2013
BY MIKE SIGOV
BLADE STAFF WRITER
  • n3jordanjones-2

    Jones

    NOT BLADE PHOTO

  • A Toledo police officer gets his gear outside the victim’s apartment on West Alexis.
    A Toledo police officer gets his gear outside the victim’s apartment on West Alexis.

    Authorities continued to look for clues Monday into the shooting death the night before of a Toledo woman at an apartment complex on the city’s west side.

    Jones
    Jones

    Neighbors said there was evidence of a dispute shortly before the shooting of Jordan Jones, 23, late Sunday at Tamaron Apartments.

    Homicide Database

    Jiskra
    Jiskra

    James Jiskra of West Toledo had a radio on at home when he heard a female neighbor yelling, and then heard rapid gunfire.

    “She yelled and screamed,” Mr. Jiskra, 60, said, adding that because the radio was on, he could not make out what the woman was saying.

    Then it was quiet for a few minutes, the retired maintenance worker said.

    “Then she started yelling and screaming again,” he said. “And then I heard several shots fired real fast.”

    Police said that Ms. Jones was pronounced dead shortly after they arrived at the scene at about 10:40 p.m., at her apartment at 1912 W. Alexis Rd.

    Ms. Jones died of multiple gunshots, according to Steve Kahle, a Lucas County coroner’s investigator, who confirmed the case was being investigated as a homicide. The official cause of death was pending an autopsy, Mr. Kahle said.

    Mr. Jiskra said he has lived at the apartment complex for two years and has experienced no other shooting incidents during that time.

    Other neighbors said the victim was heard arguing with a man about 10 p.m., just before the shots rang out. Toledo police confirmed that the victim was shot but released no other details, including a possible motive.

    Monetta Stiles, 50, also a neighbor, was watching television Sunday night when she heard booming sounds.

    Her first thought was that a power transformer had blown.

    Ms. Stiles, who is an administrator at an educational center for children, said she did not realize it was a shooting until police cars arrived.

    “I just saw her last week. I was coming in and she was too, bringing groceries,” Ms. Stiles, who has lived in her apartment about five years, said. “I feel sad about it. And to know it was so close to home.

    “It is tragic. I feel very sorry for the victim and her family.”

    Ms. Jones was employed as a state tested nurse aide at the Lutheran Village at Wolf Creek in Holland. Anne Knepper, the director of nursing there, released this statement late Monday: “Jordan Jones-Harris was a valued member of the Lutheran Village at Wolf Creek team. She will be missed a great deal by staff and residents. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family and friends during this difficult time.”

    It was unclear whether Ms. Jones was married and went by the name Jones-Harris; she was listed as Jordan Jones in the police report.

    Sgt. Joe Heffernan said Monday police investigators were still “trying to figure out what happened.”

    The door to the victim’s apartment was cracked, apparently by someone who might have forced his or her way in, police said. Maintenance workers later installed a latch lock to secure the door.

    The slaying was the 27th in 2013 in metro Toledo; 26 of those occurred in the city.

    Contact Mike Sigov at: sigov@theblade.com, 419-724-6089, or on Twitter @mikesigovblade.